2023 Backpack Trip across Isle Royale
Standing at the dock with palpable excitement in the air. Our trip to Isle Royale was about to start!
Here we are still looking fresh ahead of our 44 mile trek from Windigo to Rockharbor!
Our Route from Windigo to Rock Harbor
Matt and I started on the south end of Isle Royale and hiked northeast to Rock Harbor, a distance of 44.75 Miles.
The forest was surprisingly free of ground vegetation. Hints of fall colors can be seen peaking through the greenery. Despite being on the ridge, our views were confined by all the trees.
As day one progressed we finally caught views from above. Below we are catching our first glimpses of Lake Desor, where we camped the first night.
Absolutely gorgeous view from the edge of Lake Desor, a short walk from camp. After pumping water, we just sat soaking in the beauty as the sun slowly sank. We still had a long way to go, but sitting reminded me what a peak experience coming to Isle Royale was turning out to be.
Thursday morning we woke to a much different atmosphere. Clouds hung magically over the hills and everything was wet from rain overnight. The air felt thick with moisture and we were forced to pack wet tents so we could hit the trail.
I never like packing my tent wet and dirty but the trip must continue!
Back on the Green Stone Ridge Trail, the mist made everything feel as if we had travel somewhere in time to Lord of the Rings.
As we continued on the trail, the damp vegetation started to impact our footwear. Pushing past the ferns and other bushes that occasionally rose above our chests left moisture on our clothes, which eventually seeped into our boots.
Matt, nearly hidden by the mist hoping the sun would burn though the moisture. Instead we got several minutes of heavy rain.
Friday evening we stumbled into East Chicken Bone campsite, and as we sat resting a fox wandered into our site! He stopped to look at us and then proceeded through camp with little care from our presence.
The clouds cleared Friday evening in time for a magical sunset. Again we sat at the edge of the lake drinking in the majesty on display on Isle Royale.
As we picked up water pumps for the return to camp a commotion on the far side of the lake caught Matt’s attention. Turns out a Moose had come to Chicken Bone Lake in time for us to make our only Moose sighting!
Saturday morning the humidity remained very high and my tent had more moisture from condensation inside the fly than outside.
Finally the sun re-appeared and things started to dry out!
The view steadily got more dramatic as we neared the end of our Green Stone Ridge Trail journey.
As Saturday’s hike continued long sections of the trail passed over rock outcroppings forcing us to look for rock cairns.
After descending from Green Stone Ridge Trail we passed through many magically beautiful wetland areas. We were sure a Moose would be just around the corner. Sadly another Moose sighting remained elusive.
After descending from the ridge we followed the Rock Harbor Trail which turned out to be a whole different experience. No longer looking across the lake from the height we now enjoyed views just feet from the crystal clear waters of Lake Superior.
More wildlife such as these Merganser geese were plentiful along the way.
Lake Superior is a superior way to cool off while on a thirteen mile hike!
What better place to have a photo taken?
Elevation gain on this section looked nominal on the map but the trail grew increasingly rocky slowing our progress.
The views were truly magical as the end of the day approached.
In the distance we’re getting our first sighting of Rock Harbor. As I recall we still had just over a mile to go from this vantage point. We were feeling pretty beat-up and ready to collapse into the first available campsite.
After setting up camp we walked into Rock Harbor were we were treated to another stunning sunset!
Our final morning arrived early enough that we left camp with headlamps at the ready.
The sun came out, producing this interesting rainbow hovering over the horizon. The day looked promising but turned out to be chilly and always threating rain.
Sun just peaking over the Voyager II shortly before we boarded.
Our final look back at Rock Harbor as we began the 6.5 hour boat ride back to Grand Portage MN!